


Echo of the Day

by kissedbydragonfire



Category: Timeless (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Fluff, Groundhog Day, Humor, Light Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-12
Updated: 2018-10-21
Packaged: 2019-07-11 15:39:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15975344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kissedbydragonfire/pseuds/kissedbydragonfire
Summary: The Time Team goes back to 1776 to ensure General Washington's crossing of the Delaware and the Battle of Trenton happen the way history intended.  Complications ensue as they arrive back at the bunker.





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kt_anansi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kt_anansi/gifts).



> Just a little something I threw together while I work on my larger Garcy fics. This was inspired by Gotta_Love_Garcy's Crashing the Multiverse (I recommend reading it if you haven't).

Flynn was just about to sit down to eat his cereal when the siren blared.  Placing his bowl onto the table in disgust, he waits patiently for the remainder of the team to make their way toward the Lifeboat.  Jiya arrives first, checking the computer for the date and location of the Mothership’s jump.  Wyatt arrives next, with Lucy shortly behind him. 

“Trenton, December 24, 1776,” Connor stated.

“A day before Washington crosses the Delaware.  The Battle of Trenton happens the morning of the 26th,” Lucy replied.

“Rittenhouse is trying to help the British?” Agent Christopher questioned.

“Well, more specifically the Hessians,” Lucy responded. 

“Seems likely,” Flynn added.

“Let’s just get going.  We’ll figure it out when we get there,” Wyatt barked.

They climbed into the Lifeboat and Jiya began the pre-jump calculations as they were strapping themselves in.  The Lifeboat whirred and then jumped. 

When they landed, the team split up into two teams.  It was becoming the norm for them.  Flynn and Lucy worked together and Jiya and Wyatt worked together.  Every once in a while, the circumstance might dictate a switch up, but that was very rare.  The plan they decided on was that Wyatt and Jiya would try to find the Rittenhouse sleeper agent who undoubtedly would be on their way to warn the Hessians of Washington’s plans. Wyatt spoke German so he could easily work his way into the camp to gather information.  Flynn and Lucy would head to Washington’s headquarters, which was at the home of William Keith near McKonkey’s Ferry in Pennsylvania.  They would just need to ensure that no additional Rittenhouse agents attempted to thwart the crossing. 

The mission went off without a hitch, well sort of.  Wyatt had unfortunately drawn the attention of a few Hessian soldiers during his and Jiya’s escape and Flynn of course had to take care of the situation.  He needed to create a major distraction so that the Hessians did not discover the Lifeboat.  He told the team to jump and Jiya promised to come back for him as soon as the Lifeboat was recharged.  Lucy didn’t want to leave him, but Wyatt dragged her. 

The Lifeboat arrived back at the bunker and Jiya immediately began the recharging process.  Lucy was pacing like a panther the entire time, giving Wyatt dirty looks for making her leave her partner in the past.  Once the Lifeboat had been recharged, Jiya jumped back for Flynn.

When the Lifeboat reappeared in the field, Flynn was never more grateful that Jiya had kept her word.  She had come back for him.  He was pretty sure Lucy wouldn’t let them leave him behind, but definitely breathed a sigh of relief at the validation.  He had managed to kill a few of the Hessians that were following him, but a few were still around the area actively searching.  They had to be quick about this.  Jiya opened the hatch and popped out of the Lifeboat.  She could see Flynn running towards her and then she spotted the soldiers chasing him.  She quickly ducked back into the Lifeboat as a hail of gunfire descended upon her.  Flynn finally climbed in and as Jiya hit the button to close the hatch a stray bullet slammed into a few instruments on the dashboard.  Sparks flew into the air and a puff of smoke escaped from the gauges and circuits.  Jiya jumped the Lifeboat and they landed safely in the bunker.  She opened the hatch and they could hear the team members’ voices.  Flynn unbuckled his seatbelt and got out first, only to find Wyatt standing defensively in front of Lucy and then drawing his weapon on him.  Flynn kept walking down the stairs as Jiya stepped out behind him. 

“Take one more step and I _will_ shoot you, asshole,” Wyatt yelled.

Flynn looked at him and there was something about the look in his eyes that told him Wyatt was not bluffing at all.  Flynn put his arms up immediately.  Jiya slammed right into Flynn’s back as she wasn’t expecting him to suddenly stop.

“Wyatt, what the hell are you doing?” Jiya questioned.

“Holding our enemy at gunpoint.  What does it look like?  Did he hurt you?” Wyatt responded with his gun still aimed at Flynn.

“What?  Flynn’s a part of the team.  Stop playing around.  This isn’t funny,” Jiya answered.

Wyatt and Lucy shot worried looks at each other.  They had no idea what Jiya was talking about.  Jiya saw the worried looks on their faces.

“You guys have no idea what I’m talking about do you?” Jiya asked.

Lucy shook her head, but remained silent. Wyatt still refused to lower his gun so Jiya stepped in front of Flynn to make sure he wouldn’t shoot him.

“Jiya, there is no way that I would _ever_ be on the same team as a terrorist,” Wyatt snapped.

“Well you are.  The Time Team consists of you, Lucy, Flynn, Connor, Denise, Rufus and myself,” Jiya stated.

“Rufus? Who’s Rufus?” Wyatt questioned.

“Rufus, my boyfriend, the engineer.  He’s your best friend Wyatt.  He’s like a son to Connor.  He’s Lucy’s good friend.  He’s our teammate we lost back in Chinatown!” Jiya shrieked as she could not compute a reality without Rufus in it. 

Just then Agent Christopher darted from behind them, sticking her gun directly into Flynn’s back.  Flynn still had his hands up in the air when Agent Christopher pulled them down and handcuffed him.

“We will need to sort this all out,” Denise stated, “But until then, Flynn you’re coming with me.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” he replied mockingly.

Jiya opened her mouth about to protest, but was cut off by Agent Christopher.

“Jiya, you stay right here.  Not another peep from you right now.  I will be back shortly,” she stated.

Agent Christopher led Flynn down the hall and out of Jiya’s view.  Lucy ran to her and gave her a huge hug. 

“Did he hurt you?” Wyatt repeated.

“No, of course not!” Jiya barked back.

Jiya’s head was spinning.  Lucy, Wyatt and Denise had no idea who Rufus was and still thought Flynn was a terrorist, which was not really a change for Wyatt, but it was for Lucy.  Something awful must have happened during the jump back.  She had to figure it out and fix it.  Jiya bolted back to the Lifeboat to check what exactly had been damaged by the gunfire.  Connor was already in it, pulling out the destroyed electrical wires and the like.

“You really did a number on it this time, young lady,” Connor scolded.

“Connor.  _Do you_ remember Rufus?” Jiya asked.

“Who?” Connor responded.

It was worse than Jiya thought.  She had to talk to Flynn.  He seemed to be the only other person who realized this was not right and something truly awful had happened.  And at least he still remembered Rufus.  Rufus was what they should be working on.  They needed to get him back.  Jiya walked away from the Lifeboat as Connor was replacing the wires and whatever else had been damaged.  She walked to the back of the bunker, looking for where Denise might have taken Flynn.  She couldn’t find any trace of either of them.  Beyond defeated at this point, Jiya went to her room and decided to try to get some sleep.  She had a feeling tomorrow was going to be a long day and she needed to fix this mess.

______________________________

When Flynn woke up the next morning, his head felt a little fuzzy.  He sat up and rubbed his tired eyes.  He was in his room in the bunker, well, his and Lucy’s room lately.  They hadn’t done anything but drink, talk and cuddle, but he thought he had felt their dynamic shift right before they went out on their last mission.  He began to recall their last mission and that’s when it hit him.  The last thing he remember was being handcuffed, thrown into a room and being interrogated by Agent Christopher.  He could not recollect how he got back to his room at all.

He proceeded to get dressed and went down to the kitchen for breakfast.  Jiya was already sitting at the kitchen table.  She looked happy to see him. 

“You’re okay.  Thank God.  We need to talk,” Jiya stated. 

Flynn nodded and proceeded to pour his cereal and milk and sat down next to her at the kitchen table.

“We’re in the wrong timeline,” she whispered.

“What?” he asked groggily, “It wasn’t some stupid prank?”

“Afraid not,” Jiya responded.

“Fantastic,” Flynn responded sarcastically.

“We need to go back and try to fix this,” Jiya stated in a half-whisper as Lucy entered the kitchen.

“How do we do that?” Flynn questioned as he leaned closer to Jiya.

Lucy shot them a look, but it wasn’t a look of slight jealousy as Flynn expected.  It was a look of disgust and pity.  It was the same way she looked at him before they ever started working together and it broke him.  No wonder she wasn’t in his bed this morning.  In this reality, they were virtual strangers. 

The siren begins blaring.  The Mothership has jumped again.  Lucy runs to the computer where Connor is checking the data.

“Trenton, December 24, 1776,” Connor stated.

“A day before Washington crosses the Delaware.  The Battle of Trenton happens the morning of the 26th,” Lucy replied.

“Rittenhouse is trying to help the British?” Agent Christopher questioned.

“Well, more specifically the Hessians,” Lucy responded. 

Flynn and Jiya stared at each other in horror.  This was the exact conversation they had both witnessed yesterday in their timeline.  Had they somehow gone back to one day earlier in a parallel timeline?  If so, where were their counterparts?  None of this was making any sense. 

“Let’s just get going.  We’ll figure it out when we get there,” Wyatt barked.

“Maybe, we can fix what happened yesterday and get back to our own timeline if we go and relive yesterday over again,” Jiya whispered to Flynn.

“Maybe.  Let’s try to not get the Lifeboat shot up this time though.  Maybe if you stay in it and keep the door shut a little longer until I get there,” Flynn suggested.

“Let’s go guys!” Wyatt yelled.

They both got in the Lifeboat and the mission went exactly like it did the day before.  Flynn got left behind and Jiya had to go back to get him.  Even though she stayed in the Lifeboat this time, a stray bullet still managed to damage it once again as they prepared to jump.  They landed in the bunker.  Jiya got out first this time to ensure Wyatt didn’t try to shoot Flynn again.  Lucy and Wyatt were just standing there and he didn’t pull his gun when Flynn disembarked behind Jiya.  Lucy ran to them and he thought maybe they had done it.  They had been getting really, _really_ close lately.  But to his surprise, she grabbed Jiya’s face and kissed her.  Jiya gently pushed her away.

“Whoa!  What are you doing Lucy?” Jiya questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“What?  I can’t kiss my girlfriend now?” Lucy jested.

“Girlfriend?” Flynn questioned.

“Yes, girlfriend.  Flynn, what is wrong with you?” Lucy asked.

“Oh, this is worse than before,” Jiya declared.

“What’s worse?” Wyatt interjected.

“Everything,” Flynn and Jiya answered in unison.

______________________________

When Flynn wore up the next morning, his head felt a little fuzzy _again._   Oh no.  He once again had no memory of how he wound up here in his room.  The last memory he really had was of Lucy kissing Jiya.  It shocked him and kind of turned him on at the same time if he was being honest.  He got up and got dressed and walked down the hall to the kitchen, where Jiya was already at the table, just like she was yesterday. 

“Flynn, do you remember what happened yesterday?” Jiya asked.

“Sort of.  I remember everything up and until Lucy kissed you.  It’s all blank after that,” he answered.

“Me too,” Jiya stated.

“We really need to figure out what’s going on and how the hell we fix it.  We cannot keep reliving the same day over and over again until we get it right.  It could take us the rest of our natural lives,” he said.

“I agree.  We need to do something different this time to see if it changes.  Maybe I can talk to Connor about this.  I wish Rufus was here.  I know he’d have an idea how to fix this,” Jiya responded.

The siren begins blaring.  The Mothership has jumped again.

“Let me guess.  Trenton, December 24, 1776?” Jiya stated.

“Yes.  How did you know that?” Lucy asked.

Jiya tilted her head and looked over at Flynn.

“Because we’ve done this same mission for the past two days,” Flynn responded.

“No we haven’t,” Lucy replied.

“Yes, we have,” Jiya seconded.

Connor had been listening to the conversation the entire time with intent interest. 

“Are you two telling us you’re the only ones that remember this?” Connor asked.

“That’s exactly what we’re telling you,” Flynn answered, “but each time we come back, something else is different.  Then Jiya and I wake up the next morning and it all starts all over again.”

“That’s not theoretically possible,” Connor responded.

“It really doesn’t matter right now.  We still need to stop Rittenhouse from helping the Hessians.  We can talk about this once you all get back and that’s an order,” Agent Christopher commanded.

“Third time’s the charm?” Flynn asked Jiya playfully.

“We can only hope right?” Jiya responded before she shut the hatch and made the jump back to Trenton.

 


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite their best efforts, Flynn and Jiya's situation continues to get worse.

The third time definitely was not a charm.  Both Jiya and Flynn sat for in the Lifeboat for a few extra seconds, not really wanting to open it and find out how different the world would be this time.  This time, Jiya had landed the Lifeboat in a different location, in the hopes she wouldn’t have to leave Flynn behind and then go back for him.  Unfortunately, it didn’t matter and she still had to go back to get him.  They glanced at each other, took a deep breath and then unbuckled their seatbelts.  Then they heard banging on the hatch.

“You guys alright?” Connor asked.

Jiya hit the switch and the hatch popped open.  Connor stuck his head in the Lifeboat and took a cursory look around.

“We’re fine.  Well, physically fine,” Jiya clarified.

They climbed out of the Lifeboat and found the rest of the team waiting for them by the computers. 

“Close call?” Lucy asked Flynn.

He nodded his head. 

“Well, I’m glad that you’re okay,” she added.

Wyatt rolled his eyes at their interaction and then took Lucy’s hand in his as he turned to walk back towards the hallway.

Jiya and Flynn both turned to each other with wide eyes.  This wasn’t right either.  This was Flynn’s worst nightmare.  Lucy must’ve forgiven Wyatt the weasel.  Then he noticed the ring on her finger and his heart sunk.

“Is that a wedding ring, Lucy?” Jiya asked in shock.

“Jiya, are you sure you’re okay?  Of course it is.  You were my maid of honor at _my_ wedding,” Lucy responded in confusion.

“Your wedding to whom?” Jiya questioned.

Lucy and Wyatt both stopped dead in their tracks and stared back at Jiya like they could not believe the words they just heard escaped her mouth.

“To Wyatt.  Jiya, I think you need to see the doctor,” Lucy answered.

“No.  I just need to get Flynn and me back to our original timeline,” Jiya declared as she threw her hands up in frustration.

“What?” Lucy and Wyatt asked simultaneously.

Jiya just waved them off and began walking back to her room.

Lucy and Wyatt stood there dumbstruck and Flynn didn’t move either.

“Do you know what Jiya’s talking about, Flynn?” Lucy asked.

“I do, but you won’t believe me and it’s just not worth getting into right now,” Flynn replied.

Lucy looked visibly upset that Flynn wouldn’t tell her.  It was breaking his heart into tiny little pieces.  He had to get out of there, _now_.  So, without saying anything further on the subject, he walked passed Wyatt and Lucy down the hall to Jiya’s room.

“What the hell is going on?” Wyatt asked.

“I have no idea,” Lucy responded.

Jiya and Flynn sat on the cot in her room, going through every idea and scenario they could think of in order to get back to where they belonged.  They really needed help and Connor was the only one here capable of helping them, yet he was being the least helpful out of everyone.  They made a list of the options they had already tried and of the ones they had yet to.  They would keep the list in the Lifeboat, to ensure it wouldn’t be altered.  Eventually, Jiya fell asleep with her head on Flynn’s shoulder, as they were both exhausted.

___________________________

The next day, or the next “same” day, Flynn woke up back in his own room in the bunker, just like he had previously.  This was getting old really fast, and every time he came back, the situations just got worse.  This time, Flynn and Jiya just went and sat in the Lifeboat, minutes before the alarm indicating the Mothership’s jump had even gone off.  Connor definitely noticed this and was about to question what they were doing when the alarm started to blare. 

Lucy and Wyatt came running and were truly confused to see their fellow team members already on board the Lifeboat. 

“We’ll explain on the way there,” Jiya stated with a poignant look on her face that told both Lucy and Wyatt she meant business.

They climbed into the Lifeboat and off they went, back to Trenton for the fourth time.  This time, Flynn and Jiya teamed up and Lucy went with Wyatt.  None of it seemed to matter.  Flynn still got separated from the group and Jiya had to come back to get him.  When Flynn got into the Lifeboat, they jumped back to the bunker.

“Can we just stay in here until tomorrow?  I don’t have the strength for any more weirdness,” Jiya questioned.

“Fine with me.  I don’t think I could take it if we walked out of here and Lucy told me she was married to Connor,” Flynn joked.

“Heaven forbid,” Jiya laughed.

“And if it ever does happen, we will never mention it to anyone, _ever_ again,” he replied.

Jiya concurred, popped the hatch and they strolled out into wacky world number four.  At first, neither one noticed anything out of the ordinary.  Wyatt and Lucy weren’t married; Lucy and Jiya were not a couple; they knew and remembered who Rufus was; and they didn’t think Flynn was a terrorist (except for Wyatt, but that was to be expected).  _Had they actually done it?  Had they gotten back home?_   They still didn’t notice anything untoward, but were both still apprehensive.  According to Connor, they had only been gone for the expected amount of time for Jiya to make the jump, pick up Flynn, and jump back. 

They decided to discuss a plan for tomorrow, just in case.  The true test would be when they got up tomorrow morning.  If the Mothership jumped back to Trenton, they failed.  Flynn and Jiya had both decided that tomorrow’s option to try to get back to the correct timeline would be for Flynn to not hang back, but to get onto the Lifeboat with the others. If Jiya didn’t have to go back to get Flynn, maybe they could get home.  It was risky, but they were getting desperate.  They decided to go to sleep early tonight, since they slept upright against the wall on her cot last night.  He was too tired to care when Jiya slumped her head on his shoulder, though in his delusional delirium he wished it was Lucy more than anything.  It had only been a few days, but he missed her.  It didn’t matter that he saw her every single day.  They were all Lucy, just not _his_ Lucy. 

Jiya and Flynn walked down the hallway together.  As they were approaching their respective rooms, Flynn heard the distinctive pitter-patter of Lucy’s feet behind them.  She hadn’t said anything, but he could tell she was listening in on their conversation.

“Alright, so we know what we’re doing right?” Jiya asked tentatively, as she stopped outside of her door.

“Yep.  Don’t forget to cross it off our list tomorrow,” he jested with a wink.

Jiya opened her door and went into her room.  He didn’t hear Lucy’s footsteps behind him any longer, as he ambled down the rest of the hallway to his room.  He opened the door and let out an audible sigh when he spied his bed.  He was tired.  It wasn’t helping the situation that they were constantly stressed and exhausted.  He felt like he had run a marathon around Trenton the last few days.  He sat on his bed and removed his shoes.  He wanted to take off his pants and shirt, but was finding it hard to muster the energy to do it.  He had just taken off his turtleneck, but was still in his white undershirt, when his door flew open and Lucy barreled in like a vengeful fury.

‘Lucy, what the hell?”

Lucy slammed the door loudly behind her.

“What the hell?  Don’t you give me what the hell, Garcia Flynn!” Lucy yelled.

Flynn thought she was joking around and chuckled, but then he looked up and saw her face and knew she was dead serious.

“I’m sorry, Lucy.  Talk to me.  What’s wrong?” he asked.

She glided across the small room with ease and stood inches from him.  He was still sitting on his bed, so Lucy actually towered over him for once.  Her steely demeanor was reminiscent of Future Lucy, the one he met first back in São Paulo.

“What is going on with you and Jiya?” she demanded.

“What?”

“You heard me.  What is going on with you two?  You chose to go to Pennsylvania with Jiya, when we usually work together, which forced me to be stuck with Wyatt.  You’ve been huddled together, whispering and giggling with each other all day,” Lucy accused.

Flynn was taken aback by her accusatory tone and her insinuation that anything would ever happen with Jiya.  He was happy enough that Jiya didn’t hate him and he was _way_ too old for her.  Lucy was fierce and unabashed in her conviction, their noses almost touching she was so close.  A huge, mischievous smile appeared on Flynn’s face.

“You are maddening!” Lucy yelled as she backed away from him and paced around his room like a caged tigress.

Flynn snickered in response, which seemed to enrage Lucy even more. 

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you sound a little jealous,” Flynn teased.

Lucy stopped dead in her tracks for a second, then paced in one small, confined section directly in front of him.  Suddenly, she did her best big cat impersonation and pounced on him.  The force of her crashing into him knocked him back slightly, but not hard enough to push him down onto the bed.  Instinctively, his hands grabbed a hold of her hips, steadying her so she wouldn’t fall.  Lucy held his cheeks in her hands and she kissed him.  It was not a soft kiss.  It was desperate and pleading, as if it might be the last time she’d ever get to do it.  He was hesitant for a moment, until his better judgment went out the window and he succumbed to his deepest desire. 

They continued their frantic kissing, taking short breaks to breathe and then diving back in for more.  His hand slid up her spine and cupped the back of her head and the other firmly held the small of her back.  Lucy’s hands were around his neck, her fingers threading into his hair.  Flynn wasn’t sure if this was the first time this had happened in this timeline, or if this was a regular occurrence.  Right now, he didn’t care about anything but this amazing woman in his arms who was kissing him.  _She was kissing him!_   Lucy slid her hands down to his chest and held them there while they continued their epic make out for a few more minutes.  She broke the kiss, used her weight and leverage and pushed as hard as she could on his chest, which knocked him back onto the bed. 

“Damn, Lucy,” he said with a smile.

“Shut up and give me what I want,” she demanded.

___________________________

The next time Flynn woke up, things were a little different.  The one time he _actually_ wanted to remember what happened last night, he can’t.  He vividly recalls the make out session with her, but then everything went black and he woke up in his bed just like every other time.  _Maybe this was worse.  He finally gets to be with Lucy and can’t recall anything past her slamming him on the bed._   He rolled over to get out of bed and almost flattened Lucy in the process.  _She’s still here, lying next to him_.  His movement woke her up and she looked up at him with a nefarious grin. 

‘Well, good morning to you too,” Lucy said mockingly.

“Morning, Lucy,” he answered softly.

Lucy got up, put her clothes back on (he really did try _not_ to stare, but no to avail), and strutted toward the door.  She stopped as she reached it and turned to look back at him. 

“You may want to go with a turtleneck today,” Lucy suggested.

He looked back at her and nodded.  He was still half-asleep and half in shock of her being naked next to him when he woke up this morning.  Lucy opened the door just as Jiya happened to walk by, which caused Jiya to come to a screeching halt.  Jiya opened her mouth, but no audible sounds seemed to emanate at the moment.  Lucy raised an eyebrow and smirked.

“Thanks so much, Flynn!  Maybe we can do that again some time,” Lucy yelled.

Jiya’s jaw dropped even further as Lucy walked passed her and she got a full-fledged look at a shirtless Flynn.  She slapped her hand over her eyes as she begrudgingly entered his room.

“What the hell did you do?” Jiya demanded.

“You can look now.  I’m decent,” he answered.

Jiya slowly peeled her hand from her eyes and looked at him. 

“What happened?”

“Nothing,” he replied.

“Flynn!”

“Nothing that I can remember, anyway,” he answered.

“Nothing you can remember!  Good grief, have you seen yourself?  Did you sleep at all last night?” Jiya questioned.

“Jiya, the last thing I remember is Lucy coming in here, screaming about what was going on with the two of _us_ and then literally jumping on top of me,” Flynn responded.

_You don’t have to tell her everything_.  

“Us?”

“Trust me, you _don’t_ want to know,” he laughed.

Jiya paused for a second and then peered up at Flynn with a horrified look on her face.

“Oh, God!”

“I told you,” he cackled.

“She jumped on you, like attacked you or jumped you like _jumped_ you?” Jiya asked.

“The second one,” he replied trying not to meet her eyes.

“Wh-what?”

“That was my feeling exactly,” he replied.

“And you don’t remember _anything_ after that?” Jiya questioned.

Flynn did not want to talk to Jiya about this at all.  Thankfully, the Mothership made their jump and the sirens went off in the bunker.

“Later.  Right now, we have a job to do,” he said as he put his jacket on.

They walked shoulder to shoulder down the hallway towards the Lifeboat.

“Honestly, if we had to be stuck in one of these alternate timelines, I guess you wouldn’t mind this one that much,” Jiya teased.

“Maybe.  Although, this Lucy’s kinda scary,” Flynn joked.

They climbed into the Lifeboat and embarked on their fifth straight trip to Trenton.

 


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flynn receives a shock that brings back memories. Jiya has a shock of her own, which may help in their quest to get home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this makes sense to people. I am not an astrophysicist!

Not much changed for the majority of the operation in Trenton this time either.  The only difference came when Flynn took a bullet from one of the Hessian soldiers that tailed them back to the Lifeboat.  Lucy refused to leave him wounded in the past and despite Wyatt’s vehement protests, she stayed behind with him.  He was hit in the arm, more or less just a graze, but was bleeding steadily. Lucy took the hem of her dress and ripped it into a few strips of cloth and fastened the make-shift bandage to his arm.  It was a tender moment, which also took him back.

“We need to keep moving,” Flynn said.

“We should wait here until Jiya gets back,” Lucy answered

“No.  The Hessians will find us.  Trust me,” Flynn replied a little gruffly.

“Are we okay?” Lucy asked tentatively.

“Yep.”

“It doesn’t _sound_ like it,” Lucy stated angrily.

“Not now.  We need to go,” Flynn declared as he grabbed her hand and pulled her with him as they moved from tree to tree.

Suddenly, a colossal gust of wind gushed by them and the Lifeboat materialized. 

“Run!” he yelled.

Lucy took off towards the Lifeboat with Flynn close behind.  Bullets started flying past them as the Hessians chased them through the field.  Jiya opened the hatch and the same stray bullet struck the dashboard as Lucy and Flynn climbed in.  Lucy helped buckle his seat belt, as Flynn only had one good arm at the moment.  Jiya jumped the Lifeboat as the Hessians continued their barrage of fire. 

“Lucy!” Flynn screamed in horror.

“What?  What’s the matter?” Jiya questioned.

She turned around from her pilot seat and looked at Flynn.  His arms were stretched out in front of him as he attempted to grab onto Lucy in her seat.  Jiya watched in horror as Lucy disappeared unceremoniously.  It happened so fast that neither she nor Flynn comprehended what their eyes had just witnessed, but the result was the same; Lucy was gone.

The Lifeboat landed with a thud, as Jiya was preoccupied with Lucy’s disappearance and miscalculated the landing slightly.  They both were still shell-shocked and stared at her empty seat with trepidation.  Jiya had never really seen Flynn panic before now.  He was always so calm, cool and collected.  Now, he could barely stand up and his knees and legs wobbled underneath him.  She always knew he cared for Lucy, but now it was as plain as day to her.  Flynn loved Lucy, he might have just lost her and it might be his and Jiya’s fault.

Jiya reluctantly opened the hatch and stepped out, as she secretly prayed Lucy would be in the bunker.  Jiya scanned the room and found her as she stood behind the console of the computer terminals. 

“Lucy!” Jiya squealed.

Jiya’s triumphant squeal brought Flynn out of his stupor.  He rushed out of the Lifeboat and breathed the biggest sigh of relief once he discovered Lucy.  She looked back at him terrified as he cradled his wounded arm.

“Oh my God!” Lucy screamed.                                                

“I’m okay.  Just a scratch,” he assured her.

As he got closer to them, Jiya shot him a look that he had become way too familiar with. Something was wrong, again.  They hadn’t made it back after all.  Lucy pushed past Jiya and ran to Flynn and he froze in place as she wrapped her arms around his waist, careful not to bang into his wounded arm. 

“You can’t keep doing this to me,” Lucy said as tears streamed down her face.

“Lucy, it’s okay.  I will be okay,” he repeated with uncertainty.

“I need you.  _We_ need you,” Lucy stated as she placed Flynn’s hand on her swollen belly.

He looked down at his hand and a very pregnant Lucy and his brain short-circuited.  He stood there speechless and stationary as Lucy searched his face for some type of response. 

“You’re having a baby with Flynn?” Jiya asked.

Lucy turned her head to answer Jiya, but kept her hand over Flynn’s on her stomach. 

“Are you alright?  Of course Garcia’s the father of my baby.  What exactly happened to the two of you back there?” Lucy questioned with concern.

Lucy had never called him by his given name before.  It sounded so odd, yet it didn’t, as it rolled from her tongue. 

“A baby?” he muttered, still unable to comprehend.

“Yes, _our_ baby,” she said as she looked up at him with worry.

Flynn couldn’t breathe.  He just stood there dumbfounded.  Tears started to stream down Lucy’s face. 

Jiya gently took hold of Lucy’s arm.

“He hit his head.  He might have a concussion.  He needs to get that checked out too,” she stated.

Lucy stopped crying and looked back at Flynn with nothing but sympathy.

“Go get checked out, please,” she whispered to him.

He nodded and stumbled back a little.  Jiya put her arm around Lucy and gave her a quick squeeze.

Flynn glanced back at them a couple of times as he proceeded down the hallway to their make-shift first aid room. 

“He’ll be okay,’ Jiya reassured a worried Lucy.

Flynn sat down on the exam table and tried to catch his breath.  Seeing Lucy pregnant was quite a shock and finding out he was supposed to be the father rattled him to his core.  He stitched his arm up by himself, mostly by muscle memory, as his head swirled with today’s reality.  There was a light knock on the door a few seconds later and he prayed that it was Jiya.  He didn’t want to hurt Lucy, but he hadn’t had time to process any of this.  The door creaked open and Jiya stuck her head in.  He waved her on in and she shut the door quickly behind her. 

“Are you alright?” she asked.

“I told you.  It was just a graze.  Couple stitches, nothing more,” he replied.

“That’s not what I was referring to, Flynn.  I know we haven’t exactly been close before, but spending these last couple of days with you I feel like I know you a little better,” Jiya stated. 

“I-I don’t know how I feel,” he stammered.

“It reminded you of Lorena and Iris, didn’t it?” Jiya questioned.

He just shook his head in response, afraid if he opened his mouth he’d fall apart completely. 

“I’m sorry,” Jiya said.

“I’m just gonna take some painkillers and go to sleep.  I’ll see you in the morning,” he replied.

________________________________________

When Jiya woke up the next day, she stumbled out of her room and down to the kitchen still half-asleep.  Lucy was sitting at the table drinking a cup of tea. 

“Jiya, has Gar-Flynn said anything to you about me?” Lucy asked.

Jiya glanced at her friend.  Lucy looked exhausted, worried and scared.  Jiya felt for her.  She could try to explain everything to Lucy, but would it even matter?  The Mothership would jump soon and they’d be off again, coming home to a completely different reality. 

“No.  I just don’t think he was feeling well,” Jiya replied as she tried to reassure Lucy.

“If he does, will you tell me?  He’s not speaking to me,” she answered.

“Of course.  Give him time. I think yesterday might have scared him a little.  It was a close call with the Hessians,” Jiya replied as she tried to think of some natural cover story.

The Mothership alarm blared and Jiya got up and went over to the computer.  The console read Trenton, December 24, 1776.  Jiya barely had to glance at it.  She knew this day like the back of her hand by this point.  Wyatt and Flynn rushed into the room as Jiya had already climbed into the Lifeboat.  Lucy got up from the kitchen table and grabbed Flynn’s hand.

“Please be careful,” she said.

Flynn took her hand in his, brought it up to his lips and kissed her hand softly.

“Always,” he replied with a smirk.

He climbed into the Lifeboat and off they went back to Trenton.

When they left Trenton this time, Flynn, Wyatt and Jiya were all aboard the Lifeboat.  But as soon as they made the jump, Wyatt disappeared just like Lucy had on their prior trip.  They landed back in the bunker and Flynn got out first this time. 

“Jiya!” he yelled.

She scurried out of her seatbelt and out the hatch door.  Flynn stood at the bottom of the portable stairs that led to the Lifeboat.  Jiya could see Wyatt, Connor and a non-pregnant Lucy standing there.  Flynn shifted to his left slightly and Jiya could see someone standing behind them.  Her eyes grew wide and she was unable to contain her excitement.

“Rufus!” she screamed as she hurried towards him.

Jiya slammed into him so hard that Rufus choked for a second.  She took his face in her hands and stared at him for a bit before she kissed him passionately.  After a few minutes, Rufus pulled away with a happy, but confused look on his face. 

“What’s gotten into you?” Rufus asked.

“You’re here!  You’re alive!” Jiya responded as she took his face in her hands again.

“When haven’t I been?” Rufus answered with a raised eyebrow.

Flynn slapped his hand on Rufus’ shoulder as he walked passed them down the hallway.

“Good to have you back, Rufus,” Flynn said.

“Back from where, Flynn?”

Rufus turned to Jiya with an air of panic and horror on his face.

“Did he try to kill me again?”

“No,” Jiya replied with a chuckle.

Just as he was about to turn the corner, Flynn stopped and tilted his head back to Rufus and Jiya.

“Jiya, don’t forget to ask Rufus about our _little_ problem.  I’ll see you in the morning,” he stated.

Jiya nodded her head, unable to avert her attention from Rufus for one second. 

She kissed him again and Rufus was at a loss for words.  Jiya had never acted this amorous in the open before. 

“What is creepy Uncle Flynn talking about?’ he asked.

“Later.  Right now, come with me!” Jiya declared as she grabbed his hand and led him down the hallway to her room.

A few hours and multiple rolls between the sheets later, Jiya knew she had to tell Rufus what had happened to her and Flynn.  This would _not_ be easy.  She had to be careful about what she said, especially about him dying in Chinatown.  What she could tell him was he had been hurt and she was piloting until he got better.  If she told him he died, he’d be so freaked out he wouldn’t be able to think straight.  Jiya hated to lie to the man she loved, but she desperately needed his help in order to get them home and that required Rufus at peak brain power.  The sooner she got home, the sooner she could start the rescue effort to go back to Chinatown and save him.

“Jiya, you’re scaring me.  Did you have another one of those visions?” Rufus questioned.

“No.  I do have a problem that I need your help with.  It’s gonna sound crazy, but I need for you to trust and believe me,” Jiya pleaded.

“Okay,” Rufus replied hesitantly.

“Flynn and I are stuck in some ludicrous time loop.  Insert Groundhog Day movie joke here.  Now, I’m being dead serious.  Each time we come back to a different alternate timeline.  No matter what we try, we cannot get back to our original timeline,” Jiya stated.

Rufus shot up from the bed and swung his legs over the edge onto the floor.  He rubbed his head with both hands and stared down in disbelief. 

“This must be serious if you’re not even gonna let me make the joke about the movie.  How long has this been going on?  Wait, you’re both like Bill Murray and remember everything?” Rufus finally asked.

Jiya stopped talking as she tried to count the days in her head.

“That long, huh?” Rufus interjected.

“This is our sixth time I think?  Well, our sixth timeline.  We remember everything up to a certain point once we arrive in the new timeline.  There are always a few hours neither of us can account for.  Then we wake up the next morning and the day starts all over again,” Jiya answered.

“It sounds like a time echo,” Rufus stated.

“A time echo?”

“Yeah, that’s the best I can describe it.  At least, that’s my best guess,” he answered.

“Okay,” Jiya responded, clearly expecting more of an elaboration from him.

“It’s like if you throw a rock into water, you get a splash where the rock went in and then you get the ripples.  Something is causing you to land the Lifeboat on the ripples, the echoes, instead of landing it in the hole the splash made.  The hole is your original timeline.  As the ripples settle, the universe is trying to pull you back to your original timeline, so you black out.  You’re a living person so the pull isn’t strong enough to snap you back and you get stuck in whatever timeline you’re currently in,” Rufus announced.

“Okay, so how do I make sure I land in the hole?” Jiya asked.

Rufus paused for a second, a quizzical brow raised, as he went through various scenarios in his head.  Jiya was anxiously waiting for his answer and then her world went black.

________________________________________

When her eyes opened it was morning.  Rufus was still asleep next to her.  She clutched his body and held on for dear life.  She missed him terribly, and he was right there.  She could touch him and kiss him and….

The alarm went off.  Rufus jumped up with a start and looked wearily at Jiya. 

“How do I make sure I land in the hole?” Jiya repeated.

“What?  I have no idea.  Trial and error?” Rufus replied with a shrug.

He got up and put on his clothes.  Jiya was about to do the same when he stopped her.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

“To Trenton, New Jersey for the sixth or seventh time,” Jiya answered dryly.

“Not today.  Today is your day off.  Wyatt, Lucy and I have this,” he answered as he planted a quick kiss to her forehead. 

“But-“

“No buts.  You and Flynn have the day off to rest and recharge.  You’ve been running yourselves ragged.  No wonder you haven’t figured it out yet.  I’m surprised you know your name,” he joked.

He kissed Jiya again and jogged out the door towards the Lifeboat.  She barely had the chance to get up and argue with him, when she felt the whoosh of air the jump created.  She was too late.  Flynn ran down the hallway with a puzzled expression.

“What happened?  They went without us?” he asked.

“Apparently, this is our day off.  Rufus had an interesting theory.  We need to work off some stress if we’re going to finally figure this out and get back,” Jiya answered.

“Okay, how do you want to do that?” he questioned.

“You leave that to me,” Jiya declared.

 


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flynn and Jiya's day off. Jiya struggles with the consequences of an alternate timeline.

The Lifeboat materialized back at the bunker and Lucy, Wyatt and Rufus clamored out.   No one greeted them, which they all found strange.  They heard shouting in the distance from down the hallway.  Then, Jiya screamed, loudly.  He zoomed down the hallway and honed in on Connor’s room.  Wyatt was right behind him and Lucy brought up the rear. 

“You’re a dead woman!” Flynn yelled at Jiya.

Rufus burst into the room (about to do what, no one was really sure) and found Flynn and Jiya falling down drunk, as they attempted to play Wii boxing.  That was a spectacular failure.  Connor sat in the chair and interjected into their banter occasionally. 

“How you like getting beat up by a g-g-girl, Fl-Flynn?” Jiya stammered.

Flynn cracked up laughing, which caused Jiya to do the same.  She tripped over her feet and fell into Flynn which knocked both of them to the ground.

“Jiya!” Rufus exclaimed in shock.

Jiya, Flynn and Connor all turned to look at the rest of the team.

“Hi, Rufus.  Hi, Wyatt.  Loocy.  Loocy,” Jiya laughed.

“Are you guys drunk?” Wyatt asked.

The room was littered with empty beer bottles and whatever Connor had gulped down for the day.  Flynn and Jiya didn’t even answer, they just kept on laughing. 

“Is that my vodka bottle?” Lucy questioned.

“Maybe?” Flynn answered.

“How much did you guys drink?” Rufus asked incredulously.

“A lot,” Flynn replied as he lurched awkwardly trying to stand back up.

“And you didn’t stop them?” Rufus snapped as he turned his attention to Connor.

“Am I their bloody babysitter?” Connor quipped.

“He’s the referee!” Jiya interjected.

“You could’ve at least gotten them to slow down a little,” Rufus responded.

“Oh, I would’ve loved to see any of you bloody well try,” Connor smirked.

“What, did Flynn try to break your fingers?” Wyatt quipped.

“Flynn?  Nah, but little miss Jiya… Never play Assassin’s Creed with that woman!” Connor slurred.

“How much did _you_ drink?” Wyatt asked as he shook his head.

Connor completed ignored Wyatt and his question.

“Actually, I am _quite_ impressed they’re both still semi-lucid and standing though.  Bravo to the both of you!” Connor exclaimed as he raised his glass in the air and then to his lips.

“Note to self.  Never leave your girlfriend alone with your drunk dad and creepy uncle,” Rufus muttered.

Jiya doubled over with laughter as she swayed slightly in Connor’s direction.

“He just called you _Dad_!” Jiya roared.

“Heaven forbid!” Connor huffed.

“Thanks,” Rufus sniped.

“No, I didn’t mean it like that.  Any man would be proud of a son like you.  I just meant you might not have turned out that way if _I_ was your dad,” Connor stated with a slight slur.

“Okay, Captain Buzzkill.  Enough of that.  Your turn to face the champ!” Jiya yelled in Connor’s face.

“Flynn beat you,” Connor answered.

“No, he did not!” Jiya declared.

“Who’s the Champ now?” Flynn mocked as he leaned in close to her face.

Jiya stood there with her mouth wide open and apparently just now remembered she did in fact lose that last match. 

“Okay.  Okay, you won,” Jiya conceded.

She gave Flynn a little nudge and he had to catch his balance. 

“Alright.  That’s enough for me.  I’ll see you all in the morning,” Flynn replied as he turned to walk out the door.

Jiya walked right behind him and jumped on his back.  Flynn almost fell over from the force of her hurdle.

“Lucy.  Get on Wyatt or Rufus’ back.  We’ll race!” Jiya exclaimed.

“I’m good, Jiya,” Lucy placated. 

Jiya shrugged her shoulders, as if to say they were all missing out, as Flynn carried her piggy back to her room.

“I am not okay with this on any level,” Rufus muttered.

________________________________________

Jiya woke up with a massive hangover the next morning.  Even though she needed yesterday more than she realized, she did not like the consequences of said day.  The only positive part was she got to spend more time with Rufus.  Flynn was always quick to remind her that this wasn’t _her_ Rufus.  _Her_ Rufus was dead in their original timeline and they were about to go back to save him.  That was the most important part. 

Jiya shuffled down the corridor to the kitchen, where Flynn was already seated, as he munched on his cereal. 

“You ready to throw a dart blindfolded?” Flynn quipped.

“That’s exactly what this is going to be like.  Total shot in the dark,” Jiya responded.

When the alarm went off, they piled into the Lifeboat with less than total enthusiasm.  They completed their mission and when Jiya went back for Flynn, she programmed the jump to be what should have been a week into the future.  She wanted to try to get to the furthest or closest one of the ripples so she could get back to the “hole” of their original timeline.  She could wind up killing them as well.  Anything was possible at this point.  When they reached the bunker, Jiya found Rufus, Denise and Connor waiting for them. 

“Next time, ask for my help Flynn,” Agent Christopher commanded.

“Your help with what?” Flynn asked in confusion.

“The Hessians,” Denise replied.

“You went on a mission?” he questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“I go on _all_ the missions now.  Are you alright?  Did you fall and hit your head or something?” she asked.

“Why would you need to go on all the missions?” Jiya questioned.

“Because you need more than just one gun,” Denise answered.

“What about Wyatt?” Jiya asked.

“Wyatt?  Did _you_ hit your head?” Denise replied.

“Wyatt betrayed us.  He joined Rittenhouse because of Jessica,” Rufus interjected.

“What?” Jiya and Flynn both shouted in unison.

“And Lucy,” Connor added.

“Lucy?  What about Lucy?  Where is she?” Flynn demanded.

“Lucy Preston is the head of Rittenhouse.  You both know that and have known that since we started these missions,” Denise answered.

“What?  That can’t be. No,” Flynn said as he shook his head.

“Your ex-wife ordered the hit on your new family.  You hate her.  You would kill her if you ever got your hands on her,” Denise replied.

Flynn just shook his head in disbelief.  _Lucy would never be the head of that evil cult.  He would never divorce her if they were ever married.  He could never hate her and certainly would never hurt her physically._  

“What is wrong with the two of you?” Rufus questioned.

“In our timeline, Lucy is an integral part of this team,” Jiya answered.

“What do you mean, in your timeline?” Connor asked.

“We’re stuck in a time echo,” Jiya responded.

“A time echo?” Connor questioned sarcastically.

“Yes, well, according to Rufus,” Jiya added.

“Me?  I don’t know anything about this,” Rufus exclaimed.

“Well, not _this_ you.  The last timeline’s you was very helpful,” Jiya replied.

“You explain it to them.  My head hurts.  I need to lay down.  I’ll talk to you later,” Flynn stated to Jiya.

Flynn retreated to his room.  He hadn’t lied when he said his head hurt, but he had no intention of laying down and resting.  Out of all the alternate timelines they had experienced, this might be the worst.  Lucy was the enemy in this timeline.  _How is that even possible?  Lucy is a good, caring person._   This potential reality terrified him more than her being married to Wyatt, or being pregnant or even using him for sex (he protested, but not convincingly).  It bothered him so much, he started to become nauseated.  Part of him wanted to stay here and fix it.  Help Lucy see that she was on the wrong side.  There was a knock on his door a second later that broke his reverie.  It wasn’t Jiya, she would’ve barged in by now.

“Come in,” he yelled.

Rufus opened the door and looked tentative as he stood in the door frame. 

“Everything okay?” Flynn asked with a puzzled expression on his face.

Rufus was the last person he’d expect to see in his room, well next to Wyatt.  On second thought, Wyatt would barge in if he was pissed enough. 

“Ah, yeah.  I think so,” Rufus replied as he shifted his weight uneasily.

“Is there something I can do for you?” Flynn questioned.

“Will you tell me about some of the alternate timelines?  Jiya refused to tell me _anything!_ ” Rufus implored.

“Ah,” Flynn responded with a slight chuckle, “She may be particularly embarrassed about one in general.”

“Why? What happened?” Rufus demanded as he took a seat in the chair next to Flynn’s bed. 

Rufus was on the edge of his seat with the fervor of a pre-pubescent teenage girl at a Taylor Swift concert.

“Lucy and Jiya were an item,” Flynn responded casually.

“Get out!”

“Yep,” Flynn answered.

“Lucy and Wyatt were married in another one,” Flynn added.

“No way!”

“Yep.”

There was a silent pause as Flynn debated on what else to say about some of the other disturbing realities they had suffered.

“I told Jiya if I get out of the Lifeboat and Lucy is with Connor, I’m getting right back in!” Flynn joked.

“Yep,” Rufus mimicked.

Both men proceeded to laugh loudly at the sheer thought of that image.  It was the first time he and Rufus had ever had anything that even resembled a friendship.  He must not have tried to kill this Rufus, as he hadn’t sensed that type of tension between them.

“Why don’t you go grab us a couple of beers from the fridge and I tell you about the others,” Flynn suggested, “Like the time Lucy was pregnant.”

Rufus sprung up from the chair and hurried to the door.

“I have _got_ to hear about that one. Be right back,” Rufus replied.

________________________________________

That was the last memory Flynn recalled from that night.  He woke up in his bed the next morning, just like he always did.  This was getting old, fast.  It was like sleepwalking through life, but never waking up.  He got dressed and went down to the kitchen, where Jiya greeted him from her usual morning perch at the table with a death glare.

“What’s that look for?” he asked as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

“You just had to tell him, didn’t you?” Jiya scolded.

“Tell him what?”

“You told him about the Lucy kissing me!” Jiya yelled.

“And?  He won’t remember and we’ll be out of here soon,” Flynn shrugged.

“He nagged me all night for details, Flynn!” Jiya screeched.

Flynn responded with a hearty laugh, which caused Jiya to begrudgingly smile in return.

The alarm sounded and off again they went.  It was like being on auto-pilot for both of them at this point.

“What if just the two of us go now?” Flynn stated, more than asked, Jiya.

“Let’s try.  What do we have to lose at this point?” Jiya responded with a shrug.

“Our lives, our minds, our limbs,” Flynn sassed.

“I wasn’t really looking for an answer to that, you know,” Jiya laughed.

They climbed into the Lifeboat and shut the hatch just as Rufus and Denise ran after them with raised hands.  They jumped to Trenton, but this time it _was_ different; it was just the two of them. 

“Are you sure you can handle the sleeper on your own?” Flynn asked with concern.

“I’ve got it.  Had a lot of target practice lately,” Jiya smirked.

“You’re a good shot.  You always had the natural instincts, just needed more practice,” Flynn answered nonchalantly.

The mission was a lot dicier this time, but the two of them did manage to get to the Lifeboat at about the same time.  Unfortunately, there were twice as many Hessians that chased them with twice as many bullets.  They climbed aboard and Jiya got the calculations entered.  She turned to make sure Flynn was ready and then jumped. 

The Lifeboat landed with less of a thud this time.  The hatch opened and everything looked normal, but they had learned from prior experience that didn’t mean a damn thing.  As soon as they both saw Rufus, they knew they had failed again.  Flynn didn’t begrudge Jiya for being happy though.  He actually believed her ability to see Rufus in these timelines propelled her desire to return to their original one with even more urgency. 

They exited the Lifeboat and were greeted with the normal hugs.  They talked about the mission for a few minutes and nothing seemed too strange or out of place, minus Rufus; until she went to kiss him and he froze like a deer in headlights.  Apparently, they were _not_ together in this timeline.  Jiya was instantly crushed and Flynn knew it.  He gently placed his hand on her back and guided her down the hallway to her room. 

“I’m sorry.  I know how hard this must be,” Flynn mumbled.

Jiya turned away from Flynn as they walked and wiped away her tears. When she turned back to him, she had a determined look that Flynn had honestly never seen before. 

“We need to get back.  I-I can’t take much more of this,” Jiya cried.

“We will, I promise.  Let’s both get some rest and I’ll come back and check on you in a little bit, huh?” Flynn asked.

Jiya nodded and walked down the hall to her room.  This was awful.  Flynn didn’t even want to think about what other hell awaited them.  He just wanted to get back home to the bunker.  _He never thought he’d be excited about going back to that hole in the ground, but he couldn’t deny he was._  

He had only been asleep for about an hour, when he heard his door open.

“Lucy?” he asked out of habit.

“No.  It’s me, Jiya,” she whispered.

“What are you-”

“Shhh!” Jiya hushed.

“What are you doing?” he whispered.

“Hiding,” Jiya muttered.

“From Rufus?” Flynn asked in a daze.

“From Wyatt,” Jiya responded.

“Captain Sunshine?  Why would you be hiding from him?” Flynn asked.

“He won’t leave me alone.  He’s been following me like a lost puppy since we got here.  According to Lucy, he apparently has a thing for me,” Jiya replied with a hint of disgust.

“That’s nice.  I’m going back to sleep,” Flynn answered as he rolled over.

Suddenly, Jiya heard footsteps as someone approached Flynn’s door.

“Shit!” she uttered as she dove into the bed with Flynn.

He turned to face her and found she was trying to climb over him to get on the other side of the bed.

“What the hell are you doing?” he asked incredulously.

“Trying to hide behind your ridiculously tall self,” Jiya declared.

As Jiya tried to climb over him, her sneaker got stuck in the blanket and she was on top of him.  The door opened and Lucy quickly snuck in and shut the door behind her.  Her eyes grew wide when she turned and saw the compromising position the two of them were stuck in. 

“Um, did I miss something?” Lucy asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Jiya, get off me!” he yelled as he shifted her to his left. 

They disentangled and Flynn got up and went and sat in his chair, as Lucy sat on the bed with Jiya.  His only sanctuary had been invaded by the two women and he was a captive audience to their gossip about Wyatt’s crush on Jiya.  _At least it wasn’t Wyatt’s crush on Lucy_.  _He’d had enough of that for a lifetime_. 

At some point, they must have all fallen asleep, because when Flynn woke up he was slumped in his chair and his neck cried out with pangs of protest.  Jiya and Lucy were both curled up on the bed, practically spooning each other, which brought a smirk to his face.  His movement most likely stirred them from sleep, as he heard Lucy whisper good morning to Jiya.  After they gathered themselves for a moment, they both got up, apologized to Flynn for stealing his bed for the night and proceeded out the door just as Wyatt walked by.  To say he was shocked would have been the understatement of the year and both ladies were well aware of what this looked like.  This would be awkward.  Jiya literally counted the seconds to the next jump.  Of all the weirdness she had experienced, this one bothered her the most.  The alarm went off and she breathed a sigh of relief as she jumped to Trenton and left this timeline behind for good.

 


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jiya loses her cool and does her best impersonation of Garcia Flynn. Flynn gets to know another timeline's Lucy. A potential solution to the echo problem comes to light.

So maybe Wyatt’s crush on her wasn’t that bad.  Rufus and she weren’t together in the last timeline, but at least he was alive.  When they landed this time, he wasn’t.  _Had they finally done it?  Had they made it home?_   Denise and Connor waited for them as they exited the Lifeboat. 

“Thank God, you both made it back safe,” Denise declared.

“It’s not like we can afford to lose either one of you,” Connor added.

Flynn looked back at him with a quizzical brow.

“Since when has the team cared about losing me?” Flynn quipped.

“For a while now.  You’re a part of this team.  And we can’t lose any more of this team,” Denise answered.

“Where’s Lucy and Wyatt?” Jiya asked.

Connor and Denise shot each other worrisome looks. 

“Did something happen back there that you don’t remember?” Denise questioned.

“Did something happen to Lucy?” Flynn demanded.

“And Wyatt,” Jiya added as she gave Flynn the stink eye.

“They died,” Denise responded in a sorrowful tone.

“What?  How?” Flynn requested.

Denise found herself unable to respond.

“We lost Wyatt in Chinatown.  Jessica shot him,” Connor stated.

“What?” Jiya repeated.

“And Lucy?” Flynn asked as he closed his eyes.

He didn’t really want to know the answer.  He had always assumed that if he lost Lucy, he would’ve lost his will to live.  _How could he go on without Lucy?  There’s no plan to bring her back like Rufus?_  

“Emma shot her.  About a month ago,” Denise responded as her voice croaked slightly.

“I will fucking kill that bitch if it’s the last thing I do!” Flynn screamed.

“You already did,” Connor replied.

“What?” Jiya and Flynn asked in unison.

“You shot Emma right after she shot Lucy,” Connor answered.

“So, if Emma’s dead, who the hell is running Rittenhouse then?” Jiya pondered.

“Jessica is,” Denise responded tersely.

“Jessica?  Rittenhouse is being run by a bartender?” Flynn asked in disbelief.

“That was only her cover.  She’s ruthless,” Connor explained.

“Are we talking about the same person?  Blonde lady, married to a real dick?” Flynn derided.

Connor nodded his head in response.

“What’s going on?  Why don’t either of you remember any of this?” Denise demanded.

Flynn and Jiya turned and looked at each other.  Both of them had the eyes of a weary wanderer and were both physically and emotionally exhausted from this ordeal.  Both shook their heads at the same time and then walked back down the hallway of the bunker to their rooms.  Neither of them felt like explaining this craziness again.  Despite Denise and Connor’s protestations, they managed to avoid having to discuss it again for the rest of the night. 

The thought of Lucy dying, however, was not something Flynn had been able to shake all night.  He never gave a damn about Wyatt, didn’t wish him dead or anything, but he really didn’t care. He wouldn’t survive losing Lucy.  He _knew_ with every fiber of his being that if he lost another woman he loved, he wouldn’t survive.   He didn’t even have revenge on the table this time since he killed Emma immediately.  And then it hit him like Thor’s hammer; Rittenhouse.  He needed to finish what they started.  It would be what Lucy would’ve wanted.  Tears dropped down his cheeks lightly as he mourned a Lucy he never even knew.  He dropped his head into his lap and continued to fall apart. 

Suddenly, he heard a noise in his doorway.  When he looked up, Jiya stood there, two beers in her hands.  She didn’t speak, just walked over and sat down next to him on the bed and handed him a beer.  She had no idea that this small gesture of comfort would make it worse.  It only reminded him of Lucy.  But in her defense, _everything_ reminded him of Lucy.

Jiya had tried every combination she could think of to get back to their original timeline.  She had one more combination to try tomorrow.  If that didn’t work, she didn’t know what they were going to do.  She began to doubt her ability, but Flynn was always quick to perk her right back up, even when he was in the middle of a meltdown.  It was in this particular moment that she saw how lucky Lucy was to have the love of a man like this.  Flynn truly was a good guy, deep down.  She was also amazed at how close they had become through all this nonsense.  She considered him a true friend.  They finished their beers in silence and at some point Jiya went back to her room.

As usual, she waited for Flynn at the breakfast table the next morning.  Both of them were more than anxious to get out of there as fast as possible.  They both knew this was their last shot at this, even if they wouldn’t verbally acknowledge it. 

____________________________

The last shot was an even bigger failure.  As soon as the hatch door opened, Jiya and Flynn saw Rufus.  Maybe she could have him take another look at their problem.  She had to be missing something.  They climbed down the stairs and both stopped dead in their tracks.  Everyone that should’ve been there was, but there was an additional person, Jessica.  Her presence immediately sent Jiya into a blind, furious rage and she lunged at her with cobra-like celerity.  Flynn seized Jiya by the waist before she could reach Jessica and her legs kicked at the air with such an uncontrolled violence that Flynn was having a hard time holding onto her. 

Jessica flinched in fear and Wyatt stepped in front of her.  Rufus and Lucy looked on as horrified spectators to the whole scene, in such shock they couldn’t even muster a reaction. 

“You fucking traitorous bitch!” Jiya shrieked.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Wyatt yelled back.

“She kidnapped me and the Lifeboat and turned us over to Rittenhouse, which wound up getting Rufus killed!” Jiya howled.

“Did you have another seizure?  Rufus is standing right there!” Wyatt screamed as he pointed to his left.

“Jiya’s telling the truth.  She’s Rittenhouse,” Flynn snarled.

Something changed in Lucy’s face when he said it.  If this had been _his_ Lucy, he would’ve known immediately what she was thought, but he had no idea what _this_ Lucy was like.  Jiya still tried to get at Jessica and eventually Flynn picked her up, slung her over his shoulder and took her back to her room.  Lucy and Rufus trailed behind them at a distance, as Wyatt and Jessica hung back. 

Flynn dropped Jiya onto her bed and she bounced back up immediately like a kangaroo on steroids.  He blocked her from reaching the door, as Rufus and Lucy entered. 

“Jiya?” Rufus asked shyly.

“What!” Jiya yelled back as she paced around her small room, Flynn always within reach in case she made for the door again.

“Jiya, please tell me what’s going on?” Rufus begged.

Jiya’s face was a bright, ruby red as she continued her pacing.  Flynn decided he needed to step up and explain it to them.

“Jiya and I have been to and experienced multiple alternate timelines.  This is the latest.  But in _our_ timeline, Jessica was with Rittenhouse, she did kidnap Jiya and Rufus died on the mission to get her back.  Jessica set everything in motion and I don’t blame Jiya for wanting to kill her.  It’s the reason you guys kept your suspicions about Jessica from me.  I would’ve killed her,” Flynn explained with a nonchalant air.

“Why is Flynn spewing sci-fi talk at me?” Rufus questioned.

“He’s telling the truth.  We’ve been trying to get home for-I don’t know, a week?” Jiya answered.

“I’ve lost track,” Flynn bemoaned.

They did their best and explained everything to Lucy and Rufus.  Rufus was, of course, intrigued and once Jiya calmed down they brainstormed ideas back and forth.  Flynn motioned to Lucy, and the two of them slipped out of the room unnoticed.  He started to walk back to his room, when he noticed Lucy had followed him.  He went into his room and she followed him in, not even bothering to ask if it was alright.  Flynn didn’t mind though.  He sat down on his bed and rubbed his hands over his face.  Lucy joined him on the bed and he felt his chest tighten.  She was so close and he ached with longing just to hold her in his arms for a night.  The next thing he knew, Lucy had laid her head on his shoulder.  His body tensed initially and then he relaxed his muscles and tilted his head to rest on hers.  They sat there in silence for what felt like forever to him. 

“Are we close in your timeline?” Lucy asked.

“Well, you’re really my only friend in my timeline.  Jiya is now, but not before this whole mess happened,” he answered.

“Oh.  Do we hang out when we’re not on missions?” she asked shyly.

“You have a habit of showing up at my room with a bottle of vodka.  We talk all the time.  You told me I was the easiest to talk to,” Flynn responded proudly. 

He wasn’t sure if he wanted to know how close they were in this timeline.  If they were more than friends, he wasn’t sure he would be able to handle it or stop himself from doing something stupid.  He wanted _his_ Lucy. 

“I’ve tried to get to know you here, but for some reason you’re resistant,” Lucy stated with a sadness in her voice.

“Keep pushing.  Be persistent.  You need to convince him-me that he’s worthy of you,” Flynn explained.

Lucy looked back at him with a hopeful sparkle in her eyes.  He never liked to see her upset, and she hadn’t been smiling earlier.  Apparently, this timeline’s Flynn was as much of an idiot as he was. 

“So, where’s my Flynn?” Lucy asked.

“Uh, I really don’t know.  The finer complexities of time travel are not exactly my forte,” he teased.

Lucy chuckled and nodded her head in agreement.

“Hopefully, he’ll come back tomorrow after we leave,” Flynn added.

____________________________

When he woke up the next morning, he dragged his ragged self down to the kitchen.  He needed coffee and hoped that Rufus and Jiya had figured something out.  Otherwise, they’d be stuck in this timeline.  He was shocked when he spied the kitchen table was empty.  Jiya usually made it out here before he did every morning.  Maybe that was a good thing?

He poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot.  Someone obviously had made it, but he wasn’t sure who, since no one appeared to be around.  A few moments later, Lucy strolled into the kitchen with a beaming smile on her face.  They exchanged good mornings with each other and then both proceeded to sit and drink their coffee in silence.  Flynn got up to make himself a bowl of cereal and asked Lucy if she wanted one for herself.  Lucy politely declined, just as Rufus and Jiya walked in the room.

“Any progress?” Flynn asked.

“Actually, I can’t believe we didn’t think of this earlier.  It’s worth a shot.  You can thank Rufus for figuring it out,” Jiya answered.

“And?” Flynn exclaimed.

“And, we skip Trenton altogether.  We jump bunker to bunker.  I use the original jump coordinates.  This Lifeboat has nothing wrong with it if we don’t go to Trenton,” Jiya explained.

Flynn sat there with his mouth wide open, unable to speak, at the most logical thing he’s heard in over a week.  _And neither of them thought of this before?_  

“You guys must so be running on empty if you couldn’t think of that,” Rufus joked.

Both Flynn and Jiya shot Rufus the dirtiest look at the exact same time.

“Okay, that was creepy. You’re starting to take on each other’s personality traits,” Rufus complained.

Wyatt and Jessica entered the kitchen and everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at them. 

“Jiya, can I talk to you?” Jessica asked.

“No!  I have nothing to say to you!” Jiya yelled.

Wyatt continued his verbal barrage on Jiya and demanded that she apologize for going after Jessica.  Jiya stood her ground and Flynn couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride at her conviction in this.  Jessica’s return had been disastrous for the entire team.  It had led to Rufus being killed, Jiya being kidnapped and stuck in the 1880’s and Lucy being hurt when Wyatt chose Jessica over her.  And she was Rittenhouse.  Wyatt started to get in Jiya’s face a little and Flynn gripped him up by the shoulders and slammed him against the wall.  Wyatt fought back for a second, then realized he had been in the wrong and stopped trying to fight Flynn.  Flynn let him go and he composed himself while he shot Flynn a dirty look.  Rufus and Lucy tried to explain the alternate timeline thing to Wyatt.  Unfortunately, he was so blind about Jessica that he refused to believe she would be Rittenhouse in any timeline.

“So, you’re asking me to believe that it doesn’t matter what the two of you do and you wind up basically reliving the same day over and over again but in different timelines?” Wyatt groaned.

“What part of that wasn’t clear?” Flynn chided as he rolled his eyes.

“So, you can act like an asshole all the time and there are no consequences whatsoever?  Fantastic!” Wyatt groaned.

“I believe them,” Lucy stated softly.

“Now you have manipulated Lucy into defending you?” Wyatt said with a huff.

Jiya was exasperated by Wyatt’s behavior and her hatred for Jessica was not helping keep her calm.  She grabbed Flynn’s forearm and dug her fingernails in, as he looked down at her with a “what the fuck?” expression.

Rufus ping-ponged back and forth between his girlfriend and best friend, unsure of what to do.  Wisely, he chose his girlfriend’s side and went and stood next to Jiya.

“We’re leaving soon, right?” Flynn asked Jiya.

“As soon as possible,” Jiya answered.

“Good.  Because I for one am sick and tired of his shit,” Flynn declared.

Jiya looked back at him with a puzzled look, Lucy had a look of panic on her face and Rufus shook his head and lowered his eyes to the floor.

In a flash of movement that would put the world’s apex predators to shame, Flynn grabbed his gun, removed the safety and let off a shot that was sure to give them all hearing loss.  Wyatt clutched his foot in both hands as he slumped down to the floor.  

“This asshole just shot me!” Wyatt shrieked.

“It’s nothing you didn’t deserve.  And payback’s a bitch!” Flynn exclaimed.

Wyatt reached behind him for his gun to return fire, but Jiya had gotten there first.  She grabbed his own gun and turned it on Jessica with a cold-blooded calculus that made Flynn look like an amateur.  Flynn tried to grab her arm, but Jiya squeezed the trigger.  Flynn closed his eyes for an instant and prayed that he just imagined that.  When he opened them again, he saw Jiya had followed his lead and shot Jessica in the foot.

She casually turned back around and lightly dropped the gun into the palm of Flynn’s hand. 

“You’re right.  I do feel a little better,” Jiya stated as she walked towards the Lifeboat.

Flynn stood there in shock.  Everyone else was running around trying to help Wyatt and Jessica.  _Maybe he shouldn’t have done that.  But it did feel good_.  He turned on his heel and followed Jiya towards the Lifeboat.  Jiya and Rufus said their goodbyes and as Flynn turned to climb up the Lifeboat stairs, Lucy grabbed his hand.

“Flynn?”

“Yes, Lucy?”

“Can I kiss you?” Lucy asked.

“What?”

“Can I kiss you?  If my Flynn doesn’t come back when you leave, I’ll never know what it was like.  And I want to know what it’s like,” Lucy explained.

“Okay?”

Lucy tugged him down to her as she grabbed his lapels and kissed him full on.  It didn’t last long, but he could only imagine that’s what his Lucy kissed like too.  Well, he hoped his Lucy kissed like _that._   He separated himself from her and kissed her hand before leaving.  Jiya and Flynn powered up the Lifeboat as Rufus and Lucy watched on as they whirred out of sight.

 


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flynn and Jiya experience one more hiccup on their way home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter. Hopefully you all enjoy. Thanks again to everyone who commented, gave kudos and just read the story.  
> I am currently working on another multi-chapter Garcy AU that should be up soon.

The bunker to bunker jump was rougher than they anticipated.  They were violently tossed around in their seats and Jiya felt like her seatbelt was going to break.  When they landed in the bunker, it was eerily silent.  It wasn’t quite abandoned, but it wasn’t being guarded very well either.  They heard muffled noises from the other end of the bunker.  Jiya and Flynn cautiously walked down the hallway.  When they turned the corner, a little boy, no more than two years old, ran down the hallway as Rufus chased after him.  He had a huge smile on his face and was giggled incessantly.  Jiya and Flynn stopped dead in their tracks.  Jiya took one look at the little boy and instantly knew he was her son. 

“Mommy!” the little boy shrieked as he ran towards Jiya with outstretched arms. 

Jiya scooped him up with ease as the little boy laid his head on her shoulder.

“Thank God you’re back!” Rufus exclaimed as he tried to catch his breath.

Flynn and Jiya both stared at Rufus.  He looked older.  And this was definitely his and Jiya’s child.

“What happened?” Jiya asked.

“Mason ate too many cookies and he’s all hopped up on sugar,” Rufus explained.

“Cookies?” Jiya questioned.

 “Yeah.  You know he has your sweet tooth.  Wyatt was supposed to be keeping an eye on the kids.  He fell asleep and I’m not sure which one of them had the idea, but Flynn’s twin towers of terror figured out how to get them down from the counter.  You may want to go help your wife.  She’s got her hands full with those two,” Rufus laughed.

“What now?” Flynn asked in disbelief.

Rufus looked back at Flynn with the same leery look he used to give him before they went to Salem. 

“Kids?” Jiya asked.

“What is wrong with you two?  And why do you both look so much younger?  Did you find the Fountain of Youth when you went back for grumpy over here?” Rufus quipped.

“What is wrong with _us_?  What’s going on here?  Why are there kids in the bunker?” Jiya questioned as she shifted her son in her arms.

“We wanted to show them where we used to live.  Before we won the war,” Rufus answered.

“We destroyed Rittenhouse?” Flynn asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, like five years ago.  Flynn, you getting early dementia or something?” Rufus sniped.

“What day is it?” Flynn questioned.

“It’s Saturday,” Rufus answered.

“No, what year is it?  What’s today’s date?” Flynn asked.

“October 21, 2028,” Rufus replied.

“2028?” Jiya shrieked.

“The last time we saw you was in Chinatown,” Flynn stated.

“When Emma killed me?” Rufus asked.

Jiya and Flynn shot each other a look of hope.

“Yes.  You remember that?” Jiya asked.

“I don’t remember being killed, but you guys got me back and then we did what we did until we finally beat Rittenhouse,” Rufus replied.

“We had a baby,” Jiya mused as she looked down at the little guy in her arms. 

“You’re not my wife, are you?” Rufus responded.

“I am.  I’m just a younger version who somehow wound up ten years in the future,” Jiya muttered.

“I can believe the two of you got married, and I can believe you had a baby, but I can’t believe you named your baby after Connor,” Flynn sassed.

Suddenly, they all heard a commotion from the end of the hall and looked up to see Wyatt holding a little girl as she cried her eyes out.  Mason looked up from Jiya’s shoulder at the sound of her cries and squirmed in Jiya’s arms to get down.  They noticed movement behind Wyatt down the hall.  Flynn was paralyzed completely when he saw her.  Lucy walked toward them, each of her hands holding a child’s.  She was ten years older, but no less beautiful to him.  When he looked down at the children, he felt the color drain from his face.  The little girl looked like a clone of Lucy, except she had bright green eyes; his eyes.  The little boy was a mix of both of them, but he had Lucy’s brown eyes.  They were older than little Mason, but younger than the little girl Wyatt carried.  A future family.  The thing he thought he’d never be able to have again, stared him right in the face. 

“Daddy!” the children squealed with excitement.

Lucy and Flynn’s eyes met and she flashed back a glimpse of panic.

“You’re not my husband,” she stated calmly as she held onto the children’s hands.

“No.  I’m him ten years ago,” Flynn explained.

“Ten years ago?  We-We weren’t even together ten years ago,” Lucy said.

“No.  We’re not together, Lucy,” he answered with a slight blush.

“How are you here?  Why are you here?”  Lucy asked.

“Somehow, we went ten years into the future instead of home,” Jiya answered.

“But, at least this is the correct timeline.  We just gotta jump to the right date now,” Flynn added.

The kids squirmed in Lucy’s hands as they tried to get to Flynn.  He nodded his head in response to her silent question.  Lucy and he had always communicated with just the slightest look.  Seemed they had perfected that years before they had ever gotten together.  Lucy let go of the children and they both ran to him.  He scooped both of them up in his arms and got a better look at both of them.  They were precious and perfect.  They were his and Lucy’s.   

“Amy and Alex are four,” Lucy whispered.

The children and Lucy looked happy.  They were happy.  If this was what his future held, he wanted it now.  To be happy again, to be a husband and a father; he never thought that would be a possibility. 

Jiya was just as enthralled with baby Mason.  She inspected every inch of him, even debated to herself whether he had Rufus’ smile or her ears.  It was strange, as she had instantaneously known this was her child.  Rufus and she had never even discussed the potential of a family.  And yet, here they were, all together and happy.  And Flynn and Lucy were together and happy.  The only one who didn’t look outwardly happy was Wyatt, which was understandable given his daughter was uncontrollably crying at the moment.  She looked just like him, with dirty-blond curls and bright blue eyes.  Connor stumbled into the makeshift gathering and proceeded to gush over baby Mason and explain principles of physics.

“Connor, he’s two.  He can’t comprehend physics,” Jiya complained.

“My godson is a genius.  He understands me perfectly!” Connor sniped.

Rufus and Jiya just rolled their eyes in unison.

Her eyes connected with Flynn’s and they both wore the biggest of smiles.  If they had to be stuck in any of these scenarios, this one seemed to be the best.  There was no Rittenhouse and everyone seemed happy and as normal as they could be.  But they both knew they couldn’t stay here.  It was the future, but it was a potential future.  There was no guarantee it would play out like this.

Agent Christopher walked down the hallway with bags of food.  She placed the bags on the kitchen table and Lucy began to take the items out of the bags.  The team insisted that Flynn and Jiya stay and eat dinner with them.  Jiya was more than happy to spend more time with Rufus and Mason.  Lucy kept her distance slightly from Flynn, but she let the kids climb all over him.  Apparently, he was a human jungle-gym.  It wasn’t like Lucy was cold to him.  It was more of the look of having seen a ghost; the ghost of the man he was ten years ago in her reality.   Perhaps even the ghost of a man that she never loved.  Maybe she only fell in love with him once he had changed. 

They all sat at the table, as they ate their burgers and fries and chatted away like they had no cares in the entire world.  It was surreal to Flynn.  There was no tension, no hostility, even between him and Wyatt.  He watched with intense curiosity as Amy built a house with her fries.  His concentration broke when Lucy whispered into his ear, “She gets that from your mother.”  He turned to look back at her with the widest smile he could make.  It was nice to know that his daughter inherited something good from him. 

Neither he, nor Jiya, wanted the night to end.  It felt nice to have family all around them.  It’s what they had fought to get back to so desperately.  To know that this future was still possible, gave them the boost they needed.  Jiya was more determined than ever to go back and save Rufus and Flynn knew Lucy needed him now more than ever after losing Rufus and her mother.  But before they left, there was one more thing they both wanted to do.

After dinner, Jiya and Rufus took Mason into their old room and Jiya read him some animated R2D2 story Rufus gave her.  She of course gave him a dirty look when he handed it to her, but chuckled a second later.  She read him a few pages and when she looked back down, Mason was sound asleep in her arms.  When she looked back up at Rufus, he had recorded the entire interaction on his phone for posterity.  Jiya wanted to be mad at him, but she couldn’t be.  This was what she wanted, Rufus and a child.  And she was going to go out and make sure she got both.

Flynn, on the other hand, was slightly hesitant about tucking the twins into bed, but even he couldn’t resist their little pouts.  Lucy stood in the doorframe as he read them their favorite story about wizards and princesses.  When he got to the end, they both kissed him on his cheek and then crawled into their bunker cots.  His smile was as wide as the Grand Canyon.  This is what he wants.  He just has to go back and be patient in order to get it.  He was more than willing to wait.  As he exited the room, he noticed that Lucy waited for him in the hall.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“For what?” Flynn asked.

“For reading to them.  They’re only four, they wouldn’t be able to comprehend all this,” Lucy answered as she gestured with her hands to their surroundings.

“You don’t need to thank me for reading to my own children.  They are _my_ children, right?” Flynn stated with a slight smirk.

“Well, they sure as hell aren’t Connor’s,” Lucy laughed.

“You’ve done a good job with them.  They’re polite and smart and beautiful,” he beamed.

“ _We’ve_ done a good job,” Lucy corrected.

Flynn chuckled and nodded in response.

“Amy looks just like you,” he stated.

“Yeah, she does.  That’s where the similarities end, because that little girl is _all_ Flynn,” Lucy responded with a smirk of her own.

“And Alex?” he asked.

“Alex is a blend of the both of us.  He looks more like you, minus my brown eyes, but personality wise I guess he’s more like me,” Lucy mused.

This entire conversation was surreal.  His instincts had a monkey-wrench thrown into them and he wasn’t sure what to do about it.  He had slid right back into a happy, family man thanks to Lucy.  _What else could this amazing woman do?_ She had saved his life twice already, once in São Paulo and again in Washington, D.C.  She had given him a reason to go on, even before he fell head over heels in love with her.  And now, (in this future reality anyway), she had given him a partner for life and two incredible children.

Lucy walked with Flynn back down the hallway towards the Lifeboat.  Jiya and Rufus were already there and Jiya had a look on her face that Flynn knew by now; pissed off.  Then he noticed that Connor was in the Lifeboat. 

“What’s he doing?” Flynn asked Jiya.

“I don’t know, but he better not be screwing up my chance to get home!” Jiya yelled loud enough that Connor would hear her.

“You two wouldn’t be going home if it wasn’t for me!” Connor barked back as he came out with a bunch of wires grasped in his hand.

“What did _you_ do?” Jiya gasped.

“The reason you wound up ten years in the future was the sensor was loose on the date calculator.  So even though you put it the correct date, the minute you powered up the Lifeboat the vibrations would move the date.  If _I_ didn’t figure that out, you would’ve traveled on your own timeline for the rest of your lives, or until you went mad, whichever came first,” Connor said as he shrugged his shoulders.

Jiya immediately ran with Rufus to the Lifeboat to run diagnostics.

“A bloody thank you would be nice!” Connor wailed.

Jiya ran the diagnostics multiple times to make sure and when she was positive that Connor wasn’t actively trying to kill them, she motioned for Flynn that it was time to go.

After they strapped themselves in, Jiya checked the systems and coordinates one last time.  Then she spun her chair and turned to Flynn.

“You ready?” she asked.

“As I’ll ever be,” he answered.

Jiya counted down from three and then they jumped.  The landing was smoother than the finest silk.  Jiya had at least used this mess for practice.  The hatch opened and Lucy, Wyatt, Connor and Denise were all waiting for them. 

“Where the hell have you two been?” Denise demanded.

Flynn and Jiya glanced at each other with eyes drained from exhaustion and desperation to see if they had made it home finally.

“How long have we been gone?” Jiya asked.

“Two weeks!” Denise yelled.

“Sounds about right,” Jiya replied nonchalantly.

“What’s today’s date?” Flynn asked.

“October 21, 2018,” she answered curtly.

Flynn and Jiya turned towards each other and froze in place.  Their eyes were wide and wild, each seeking the other’s confirmation that this was undoubtedly happening.  Jiya closed the gap between them and Flynn brought his hands up to her cheeks.

“You did it!  You brilliant woman, you did it!” he exclaimed.

Jiya pulled him into a bear-hug as tears streamed down her face.

“We did it!” she shrieked.

“Did what?” Connor inquired.

“Made it home,” Flynn responded as he wiped away a stray tear from Jiya’s face. 

“Were you in Trenton this entire time?” Denise questioned.

“We made multiple trips to Trenton.  So many that I’ve lost count,” Jiya answered with an audible sigh.

Lucy rushed towards them and hugged them both at the same time.

“I was so worried about you both,” she stated as she breathed a sigh of relief, comforted by the physical contact with the two of them.

“One of you better start explaining what happened,” Denise exclaimed with a scowl.

“Time echo, alternate timelines with stranger than fiction realities,” Flynn muttered.

“That pretty much sums it up,” Jiya agreed.

The entire Time Team stared at them with gaping mouths and stunned faces.  Jiya and Flynn chuckled to themselves like the entire thing was an inside joke. 

“I’m still waiting for a better explanation from the two of you.  Let’s go.  Full debrief NOW!” Denise demanded.

Flynn gave Agent Christopher a mock salute and followed her down the hallway.  Jiya trailed behind him, then stopped and turned back to Connor.

“Connor, just so you know, there is no way in hell that I’m naming my kid after you,” Jiya teased.

Connor looked back at her in utter confusion.  Jiya chuckled and then caught up with Flynn and Agent Christopher in the corridor.  Connor turned to Lucy and Wyatt, still with a look of confusion on his face.

“Is she pregnant?” Connor questioned.

_______________________________

Four and a half hours of interrogation later, Flynn and Jiya emerged from Agent Christopher’s tirade relatively unscathed.  Both were dead on their feet as they made their way back to their respective rooms.  Flynn reached his room first and Jiya stopped as he opened his door.

“Well, then….” Jiya stated.

Flynn didn’t respond verbally, just nodded his head in acknowledgment.  A new, intense bond had been formed between them, and neither had the wherewithal to navigate this new found friendship.  In fact, Jiya had almost reached Lucy level with non-verbal communication.  She could read his thoughts and convey hers without uttering a single word; well most of the time.  As he sat on his cot, he looked around the tin-can he called home and exhaled sharply.  He felt both happy and relieved to be back.  A few seconds later, he heard the door handle jiggle. 

“Let me guess, you didn’t get enough of me on our little adventure,” he joked.

He didn’t hear any response to his joke, only the door as it creaked closed. 

“I could never get enough of you,” Lucy teased.

His head snapped towards her, surprised by her presence in his room.

“Sorry, I thought you were Jiya,” he stammered.

He watched her reaction carefully.  She seemed hurt for a moment, then smiled up at him with the smile that had melted his heart every time he had witnessed it.  Lucy moved closer and sat down next to him on the bed.

“I didn’t want to hurt Jiya’s feelings, but I was really worried about you most of all,” Lucy whispered as she leaned in and placed her head on his shoulder. 

Surprised by her admission, he tilted her chin up and locked eyes with her.  The Lucy that stared back at him was not the same, broken woman he witnessed back in Chinatown.  _Had two weeks without him been this good for her?_  

“I can’t lose you Garcia,” Lucy said as she reached her hand up and cupped his cheek.

“I can’t lose you either, Lucy,” he answered in a half-whisper. 

He wanted to kiss her with every fiber of his being.  Having seen what their potential future could hold, he didn’t want to waste any more time.  But he wasn’t sure Lucy was ready.  His eyes focused on the ground as he dared not look at her.  After all the iterations of Lucy he had met, he had forgotten where _they_ had left off.  What was it she wanted from him at this point?  Did she only want a shoulder to cry on, a friend to lend an ear?  Or did she want something else from him now.  Had something changed in the two weeks that he was gone? 

Lucy wrapped her arms around him and he sunk into her embrace.  One of his arms held the small of her back and the other held the nape of her neck, as his fingers meshed into her hair.  He placed a kiss to her forehead and held her, just like he had back in that alley in Chinatown.  Lucy stayed there, she did not pull away and to his own surprise, he continued to plant kisses down her face.  When he got to her lips, he hesitated slightly, as he silently sought her permission. He didn’t have to wait, because Lucy pressed her lips to his, softly at first, then deepened the kiss with such passion and fervor it shook him to his core.  Reflexively, he kissed her back and matched her intensity with every twist and torsion of their tongues.  After a little while, he broke their kiss and gazed tenderly into her eyes.  There was no abject horror there, no disgust, nothing but excitement and longing. 

“The last two weeks without you put things into perspective.  I need you to know how I feel,” Lucy stated.

Flynn opened his mouth to respond, but Lucy put her finger over it.

“I don’t know what this means, or what we are, but I know this is where I want to be.  You, are who I want to be with,” Lucy added.

He had waited what felt like an eternity for her to feel this way about him.  He never thought he ever stood a chance, it was just some unattainable fairy tale he had concocted in his head. 

“I want to be with you too, Lucy.  I just-I need you to be sure,” he replied with slight hesitation.

Lucy answered him with another kiss, exciting a small moan from him in response. 

As he slept that night, with _his_ Lucy in his arms, he had never felt more at home or more at peace in his entire life.  But he was also painfully aware that Jiya wasn’t so lucky.  Tomorrow, he would help her achieve her miracle by getting Rufus back.  But tonight, he reveled in this newfound part of his relationship with Lucy, as she slept soundly in his arms. 

 


End file.
